Turkish delight at Faldo Series

19 year-old Turkish girl, Elcin Ulu, battled tough playing conditions to top a cosmopolitan leaderboard at the end of the inaugural Faldo Series Greece Championship. Supported by The R&A, the European Tour and Lough Erne Resort,
this prestigious tournament was staged over the Dunes Course at the Costa Navarino Resort, Messinia, Greece.

Ulu, a plus two golfer from Carya Golf Club, who won the Girls’ title at the 2008 Faldo Series Turkey Championship, posted two impressive rounds of 71 for a two under par total of 142 to win both the overall prize and the Girls’ Under-21 category.

The victory gives Ulu a place at the forthcoming Faldo Series Europe Grand Final, to be played over The Faldo Course at The Lough Erne Resort, Co. Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, on September 21-23, where she will be joined by Max Thunberg from Sweden, who won the Boys’ Under-21 age group with rounds of 77 and 76, Israeli Uri Bogoslavsky, victor of the Boys’ Under-18 age group with rounds of 74 and 76 and Matthew Moucharafieh from the Lebanon who emerged as winner of the Boys’ Under-16 age group with scores of 77 and 79.

Ulu will also be joined in Northern Ireland by compatriot, Tugce Erden who plays out of Klassis Golf in her home country. Erden posted rounds of 77 and 84, good enough to give her a five shot victory in the Girls’ Under-16 age group.

Organised in association with Glyfada Golf Club of Athens, the inaugural Faldo Series Greece Championship attracted a strong international field of almost 50 golfers from Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Italy, Malta, Serbia, Sweden, Turkey, Russia and the USA but it was Ulu who always looked in charge.

The talented Turkish girl fired two birdies and dropped just one shot during her opening round, carded two bogeys during the first half of her second round but then stormed home in two under par 34 despite a seven down the final hole well after her impressive victory had already been secured. Ulu won the overall prize eight shots ahead of Bogolavsky and was no less than 18 shots in front of Greece’s Stefania Toka in the Girls’ Under-16 age group category.

Commenting on her success Ulu said “I’m really excited about going back to the Faldo Series Europe Grand Final. I’m looking forward to the challenge of Lough Erne. I know I will be competing against a lot of good players and hopefully I can give a strong performance”.

It was a championship in which all of the age group winners secured wide margins of victory. Thunberg, from the Glasrikets Vaxjo Club in Sweden, claimed a seven shot victory over Israel’s Ben Fridich and Lefteris Perros from Greece in the Boys’ Under-21 category, Bogoslavsky was no less than 12 shots in front of John Verelstmicallef
from Malta in the Boys’ Under-18 category and Moucharafieh had a five stroke advantage over Alihan Afsar from Turkey in the Boys’ Under-16 section. Elsewhere, there was a similarly decisive victory in the Girls’ Under-16 category, with Erden defeating her Klassis Golf clubmate, Damia Bilgic, by a five stroke margin.

For more information visit www.nickfaldo.com/series